Laura Tohe

Laura Tohe, Navajo poet


Laura Tohe is Diné (Navajo). She was born in Fort Defiance, AZ and is Tsenabahilnii (Sleepy Water People clan) and born for the Tódích´íinii (Bitter Water clan). She grew up near the Chuska Mountains on the eastern border of the Navajo Reservation and attended both boarding schools and public schools in Albuquerque.

Laura writes poetry and stories as well as academic papers for journals and conferences. Her work has been published in numerous journals, such as Calyx and Callaloo. Her work has also been translated into modern dance and music by The Moving Company in Omaha, NE. She has served as a panelist in open fora and on review panels. She is a member of the National Caucus Board of the Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers and on the Advisory Board for the wicazo sa review. She has been a special volume editor for Nebraska Humanities and a speaker for the Nebraska and Arizona Humanities Programs as well as serving on both the Nebraska and Kansas Art Councils.

Laura holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of New Mexico and an M.A. and Ph.D. in English from the University of Nebraska where she received both a Regent Fellowship and Minority Fellowships to support her studies. She is now an Associate Professor in the English Dept. at Arizona State University.

Laura gives numerous readings of her work and is currently working on a new book of poetry, stories and essays, Talking Woman.